Method and apparatus for forming rings of threads

ABSTRACT

SINGLE THREADS ARE DRAWN OFF A SUPPLY, CONVEYED THROUGH THREAD-BREAK STOP MOTIONS AND COMBINED IN A ROPE WHICH IS PASSED THROUGH THE AXIS OF A REVOLVING GUIDE ARM TO FEED THE ROPE INTO GAPS BETWEEN CONSECUTIVE TEETH ON THE DESCENDING PERIPHERIES OF TOOTHED WHEELS. THE REAR PATHS OF THE THREAD RINGS FORMED IN THIS MANNER ARE CONTINUOUSLY CARRIED DOWNWARDS BY THE WHEELS AND PUSHED INTO CONTACT WITH A FORWARD TRAVELLING FRICTION BELT WHICH CONVEYS THEM UNDERNEATH TWO MEMBERS SLIDABLY PRESSING THE RINGS IN CLOSE SUCCESSION ONTO THE BELT WHICH CARRIES THEM FORWARD IN THE FORM OF LAPPED SEQUENCES OF LAYERS OF RINGS OF SUBSTANTIALLY UNIFORM THICKNESS SUITABLE FOR SUBMISSION TO CONVENTIONAL TREATMENTS.

March 16, 1971 3,570,232

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING RINGS OF THREADS Filed Feb. 25, 1969 IE. ERB

2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIGZ \\\\\ IIIIII ll INVLN ()R E RNST E RB WM AGENT E.ERB

March 16, 1971 METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING RINGS OF THREADS FiledFeb. 25, 1969 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENI'OR. ERNST ERB AGENT United StatesPatent Oflice 3,570,232 METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING RINGS F THREADSErnst Erb, Basel, Switzerland, assignor to Etablissements Superba SA,Mulliouse, France Filed Feb. 25, 1969, Ser. No. 802,114 Claims priority,application Switzerland, Feb. 27, 1968, 2,806/ 68 Int. Cl. B65h 54/82US. Cl. 57-1 11 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Single threads aredrawn off a supply, conveyed through thread-break stop motions andcombined in a rope which is passed through the axis of a revolving guidearm to feed the rope into gaps between consecutive teeth on thedescending peripheries of toothed wheels. The rear parts of the threadrings formed in this manner are continuously carried downwards by thewheels and pushed into contact with a forward travelling friction beltwhich conveys them underneath two members slidably pressing the rings inclose succession onto the belt which carries them forward in the form oflapped sequences of layers of rings of substantially uniform thicknesssuitable for submission to conventional treatments.

The present invention relates to a method of forming threads into ringsand of depositing the rings in overlapped sequence to form layers ofrings of substantially uniform thickness that are suitable forsubmission to a subsequent treatment, such as drying, steaming, dampingand so forth.

The principal object of the proposed method is the production of anabsolutely loose and uniform thin layer of rings without kinks to permitthe treating agents to penetrate rapidly and the treatment to beperformed at maximum conveying speeds. For maximum economy in performingthe contemplated treatments it is proposed to combine a plurality ofindividual parallel threads and to deposit the same in the form of arope forming layers of rings. In the case of very coarse yarns thelayers of rings may also be formed from single threads.

In such a process it is of considerable importance to ensure that thethreads are not deposited in narrow loops but rather in the form ofrings that are as uniform and even as possible. If the rings are notdeposited in arcs having fairly large radii but in kinked curves,undesirable permanent deformation remain after fixation. Moreover, it isalso intended that the individual rings should be deposited on a supportin as even distribution as possible to permit hot air for drying to passevenly through the rings and to absorb a maximum amount of moisture.

For forming a layer of rings consisting of a plurality of threads it isessential to insert into the performed rope of threads a twist of oneturn per ring about the rope axis so that during axial withdrawal of therings after treatment the ropes will exactly untwist and parallelismbetween the individual threads will be restored to permit the threads tobe easily reseparated and wound on separate bobbins.

According to the invention all these requirements which a satisfactorydeposition of thread rings should fulfill are satisfied by drawing adesired number of single threads off a supply, conveying them throughthreadbreak stop motions and then combining them in a rope which for thepurpose of inserting a single turn twist into each ring is passedthrough the axis of a revolving thread guide arm which feeds the ropeinto the gaps between consecutive teeth on the descending peripheries ofrotating toothed wheels, the rear parts of the thread rings which arethus continuously carried downwards by said wheels being finally pusheddown at the rear end of the arrangement by a roller or sliding shoesinto con tact with a forward travelling friction belt and thus conveyingunderneath at least two slipper members slidably pressing the rings inclose succession onto the friction belt which by virtue of its higherfriction positively carries them forward in the form of a lappedsequence of layered rings which at the delivery end of the belt aretransferred over the return roller upside-down to a heat-resistantconveyor belt underneath the friction belt, upon which the rings arecontinuously conveyed through the treating chamber.

The thickness of the layers of rings can be varied either by varying thespeed of the ring-depositing as sembly or the r.p.m.s of the threadguide in relation to the speed of travel of the friction belt, orconversely.

The apparatus for performing this method is characterised by athread-ring-forming and conveying unit comprising at least two pairs ofcontrarotating toothed wheels, a thread guide arm mounted above thepairs of toothed wheels to perform a rotary movement about the pairs oftoothed wheels, compensating guides disposed alongside and between thepairs of toothed wheels for the reception of, and for then guiding thethread rings deposited by the thread guide arm during its rotationbetween the teeth of the wheels, drive means for driving the shafts ofthe toothed wheels in functional dependence upon the rotation of thethread guide arm to present a fresh gap between consecutive teeth to thefeeding end of the thread guide arm, further a continuously drivenfriction belt disposed below said toothed wheels and a guide elementabove said belt in the thread-depositing range of the rear end pair oftoothed wheels, which guide element accepts the rear portions of eachthread ring from the rear end pair of toothed wheels and for the purposeof continuously depositing the same transfers them consecutively underat least two slipper members which slidably bear on the conveyor belt,the coefiicient of friction between the rings and the slipper membersbeingless than that between the thread rings and the friction belt.

This novel method of depositing yarn permits any thread material,whether damp or very smooth, to be deposited in the form of a loose butprecisely laid layer of rings because the rings of thread are positivelyformed and the employment of a supplementary guide element in the threaddepositing range of the rear end pair of toothed wheels ensures anabsolutely positive transfer of the thread rings in a manner eliminatingthe possibility of several rings being retained and accumulating as aresult of excessive adhesion, electrostatic effects and the like.

A11 embodiment of apparatus for performing the pro posed method isillustratively shown in the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of the apparatus,

FIG. 2 is a view in plan seen from the plane marked II in FIG. 1,

FIG. 3 is a rear end view of the apparatus, and

FIG. '4 is a larger scale fragmentary representation of part of thefront toothed wheel.

With reference to FIG. 1 there is provided a shaft 1 which is mounted ina bearing plate 1a and carries a thread guide arm 2 balanced by acounterweight. Below this thread guide a chassis 3 on the end of saidshaft carries a thread-ring-forming and conveying unit generallyindicated by reference numeral 20. This unit comprises four toothedwheels 4, their shafts 5, a worm wheel 6, a driving worm 7 and a numberof compensating guides -8, 9 and 10.

The threads 17 are drawn off a supply and first pass through yarn-breakstop motions, not shown, before axially entering the end of the shaft 1to be carried around by the revolving thread guide arm 2 from which theyissue through a terminal guide ll. In the course of each completerevolution of the thread guide arm 11, a thread ring is formed about thedepositing mechanism of the unit 20. The rope of threads 17 enters thegaps 4b between the teeth on the outer descending circumference of thetoothed wheels 4 and also embraces the compensating guides 8 and 10which are provided between and alongside the toothed wheels 4 (cf. FIGS.2 and 3). Whilst the thread guide arm 11 rotates, the four toothedwheels 4 are so driven by a worm 7 which is fast on the shaft 1 and bywormwheels 6 that the thread rings are continuously lowered, descendingby the pitch of one tooth in the course of each full revolution of thethread guide arm (FIGS. 2, 3 and 4). The rear ends of the thread ringseventually descend to a roller 12 (FIGS. 1 and 3) which is disposedbetween the rear end toothed wheels 4. The roller which is frictionallydriven by a forwardly travelling friction belt 18 presses the rings downon the belt. The rotation of the roller 12 completes the descent of therear parts of the rings, carrying them into contact with the frictionbelt 18 and thereby conveying one thread ring after another under twoslipper members 9 (FIGS. 1 and 3). The function performed by thesupplementary roller 12 must not be underestimated. In its absence apositive transportation of the thread rings and the avoidance ofaccumulations of thread rings would be impossible. Experience has shownthat an accumulation of several thread rings leads to non-uniformdepositing in a manner that is very objectionable during subsequenttreating processes. Preferably the roller 12 is made of an elasticmaterial, such as rubber, to ensure uniform and reliable entrainment ofthe rings. Moreover, the peripheral surface of the roller may be milledto improve the adhesion of the thread rings.

The roller l12 could be replaced by a smooth sliding shoe which wouldsimilarly operate to convey the rear parts of the thread rings under theslipper bars 9.

The slipper bars 9 keep the rear parts of the thread rings 17 in contactwith the friction belt 18 so that the latter carries the rings forwarduntil they are completely clear of the ring-forming unit. The leadingportions of the thread rings are conveyed forward in synchronism withthe rear parts when these are suddenly entrained by the belt 18. Theyare thus conveyed on the friction belt 18 in a continuous stream ofoverlapped rings. By varying the speed of the friction belt in relationto the r.p.m.s of the thread guide the number of layers of rings in thestream can be adjusted.

The desired continued transportation of the thread rings deposited onthe belt 18 relies upon the coefiicient of friction between the threadrings and slipper members 9 being less than that between the rings andthe friction belt 18. The undersides of the slipper members are usuallypolished quite smooth so that they merely operate to push the rings downWithout applying a significant braking force to the rings.

Since the chassis of the entire ring-forming and depositing unit isrotatable about the journalled end of the shaft 1 special retainingblades are adapted to engage peripheral grooves 4c (FIG. 4) in the frontend wheels 4 below the feed line of the rotating thread guide for thepurpose of keeping the unit stationary. The blades 15 are attached tobrackets 16 (FIG. 1) which are firmly secured to the bearing plate outof the range of operation of the thread guide. In view of the length ofthese blades the thread guide 11 is arranged to insert the rope offilaments into the wheels 4 at a point which is well above the level ofthe wheel centres. In order to prevent the thread rings from beingpulled excessively taut as they descend across the wheel centre linewhere the lateral projection of the wheels is a maximum, compensatingguide means 8 are provided alongside the wheels 4 and furthercompensating guide means 10 are located between each pair of wheels. Thecontours of these guide means which have well rounded configurationsfunction to keep the tension of the threads constant. Owing to theirconcave configuration they lengthen the circumference of the freshlylaid thread ring between the wheels and then reduce it as the ringtravels over the centre line of the wheels 4. Thereafter they againlengthen this part of the circumference of the ring to keep the ringsgently taut so they are lowered by the teeth of the wheels 4 andtransferred safely to the roller 12 and then to the friction belt 18.

FIG. 4 shows a portion of the teeth of a wheel 4 on a larger scale. Itwill be understood from this drawing the the bottom of the groove 4c forthe retaining blades is well above the bottom of the valleys between theteeth for the reception of the rings. This prevents the thread ringsfrom being jammed. The leading parts of the thread rings are carrieddownwards well below the edges of the blades 15 until they are clearwhen they are deposited more or less closely in overlapped layersdepending upon the speed of travel of the friction belt.

Since the endless friction belt 18 is not heat-resistant the layers ofrings are carried down over the forward return roller of the belt anddeposited upside down on a contra-directionally travellingheat-resistant and airpermeable belt underneath. For the sake ofsimplicity this latter belt is not shown in the drawings.

The formation of rings and their deposition in overlapped layers mayagain be described in detail: The filaments which enter through thehollow interior of the shaft 1 are wound around the toothed wheels 4 andthe compensating guides 8 and 10 by the continuously rotating threadguide 11. Each revolution of the thread guide arm 2 forms one completering which is continuously lowered by the pitch of one tooth in thecourse of each revolution. Since the filaments 17 enter the shaft 1axially, whereas they are radially deposited on the belt, an axial twistof one turn is inserted into each ring, which i subsequently untwistedagain when the thread is axially withdrawn. This is important when aplurality of threads are combined to form a rope. At the same time thetwist operates to keep the threads in the lapped layers of rings in awell ordered arrangement. Moreover, after the treatment the withdrawalof the thread rings is facilitated Axial withdrawal removes thisintentionally inserted twist and it is then easy to reseparate theindividual threads and to wind them on separate take-up bobbins.

Since preferably the thread rings are not carried completely down to thefriction belt by the teeth of the toothed wheels, the above-mentionedroller 12 is provided between the two rear wheels 4. This roller isdriven by the forwardly travelling friction belt as shown by the arrow.The roller transfers the rear portions of consecutive rings 17 intocontact with the surface of the friction belt 18 and thus positivelycarries them under the two slipper bars 9 well clear of the wheels 4. Inthis stage the slipper bars keep each thread ring in firm contact withthe friction belt 18, so that the latter can convey the thread ringsforward.

The front portions of the descending thread rings are automaticallydisengaged from the teeth of the feed wheels by the compensating guides8 and 10 and they are then deposited in layers having an overlapdetermined by the speed of the friction belt which conveys them away. Asalready mentioned the friction belt is an endless short belt which runsover two correspondingly spaced return rollers (not shown). Since thisfriction belt is not heatresistant the lapped thread ring layers arecarried downwards over the front return roller and are depositedupside-down on a contradirectionally travelling heat-resistant conveyorbelt underneath which conveys them through the treating chamber.

What I claim is:

1. A method of forming threads into rings and depositing the rings inoverlapped sequence to form layers of rings of substantially uniformthickness suitable for submission to a subsequent treatment, such asdrying, steaming or damping wherein a desired number of single threadsare drawn off a supply, conveyed through thread-break stop motions andcombined in a rope which for the purpose of inserting a .single turntwist into each ring is passed through the axis of a revolving threadguide arm which feeds the rope into the gaps between consecutive teethon the descending peripheries of toothed wheels, the rear parts of thethread rings which are thus continuously carried downwards by saidwheels being finally pushed down into contact with a forward travellingfriction belt and thus conveyed underneath at least two members slidablypressing the rings in close succession onto the friction belt which byvirtue of its higher friction positively carries them forward in theform of a lapped sequence of layered rings.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein at the delivery end of thebelt the lapped sequence a rings is transferred to and depositedupsidedown on a heatresistant conveyor belt underneath the frictionbelt, upon which conveyor belt the rings are continuously conveyedthrough the treating chamber.

3. Apparatus for forming a lapped sequence of layered rings including athread-ring-forming and conveying unit comprising at least two pairs ofcontra-rotating toothed wheels, a thread guide arm mounted above thepairs of toothed wheels to perform a rotary movement about the pairs oftoothed wheels, compensating guides disposed alongside and between thepairs of toothed wheels for the reception of and for then guiding thethread rings deposited by the thread guide arm during its rotationbetween the teeth of the wheels, drive means for driving the shafts ofthe toothed wheels in functional dependence upon the rotation of thethread guide arm to present a fresh gap between consecutive teeth to thefeeding end of the thread guide arm, a continuously driven friction beltdisposed below said toothed wheels and a guide element above said beltin the thread depositing range of the rear pair of toothed wheels, whichguide element accepts the rear portions of each thread ring from therear pair of toothed wheels and, for the purpose of continuouslydepositing the same, transfers them consecutively under at least twoslipper members which slidably bear on the conveyor belt, thecoefiicient of friction between the rings and the slipper members beingless than that between the thread rings and the friction belt.

4. Apparatus according to claim 3, in which the drive means comprise adriven worm which transmits torque to the toothed wheels through wormwheels.

5. Apparatus according to claim 3, in which the guide element is aroller disposed between the rear pair of toothed wheels and bearing onthe friction belt in frictional driving contact therewith.

6. Apparatus according to claim 5, in which the roller has a milledcircumferential surface.

7. Apparatus according to claim 5, characterised in that the roller orat least its surface, consists of an elastic material, such as rubber.

8. Apparatus according to claim 3, in which the guide element is a rigidsliding guide shoe of which the bottom end extends at least as far asbetween the ends of the slipper members and which thus ensures apositive forwarding action of the belt on the thread rings.

9. Apparatus according to claim 3, in which stationary retaining bladesare attached by a bracket to a bearing plate of a thread guide shaft andengage peripheral grooves in at least one of the wheels to prevent theconveying apparatus from rotating.

10. Apparatus according to claim 9, in which the gaps betweenconsecutive teeth of the front end wheels are more deeply cut into thewheels than the peripheral grooves thereby to prevent the threads frombeing jammed by the retaining blades.

11. Apparatus according to claim 3, in which a heatresistantcontradirectionally travelling conveyor belt is provided below thefriction belt for accepting the layer of thread rings from the frictionbelt and conveying the same through a treating chamber.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,882,673 4/1959 Buddecke 28-21X3,389,868 6/1968 Majkrzak 2821X 3,430,312 3/1969 Drummond 2821X JOHNPETRAKES, Primary Examiner Us. 01. X.R.

